Dana Countryman

Vincent E.  Gambella

Vincent E. Gambella
1932-2019

CLEVELAND, NY/TENAFLY, NJ – Vincent E. Gambella, 87, formerly of Tenafly, NJ, passed away peacefully on Thursday, October 3, 2019.

He was born on July 28, 1932, in Brooklyn, NY, the son of Joseph and Antoinette (Coletti) Gambella. Vincent was a graduate of PS95 and attended college. On July 28, 2006, he married Bonnie Loan of Cleveland, NY.  Vincent served his country in the Army Reserves. He was known as guitarist “Vinnie Bell,” the inventor of The Electric Sitar and was most famous for his underwater guitar sound. He was the recipient of many prestigious awards. To read more about Vinnie’s life and accomplishments you are invited to visit his website at vinniebell.com.

Vincent “Vinnie” Bell died in his sleep, just after midnight on October 3rd, 2019, in Utica, NY, according to his wife, Bonnie. He had been suffering from the effects of Alzheimer’s Disease for several years.

Vinnie was well-known in the music industry, and played guitar on many hit records from the ‘60s and ‘70s for artists as diverse such as The Four Seasons, Frank Sinatra, Dionne Warwick, Herman’s Hermits, Bing Crosby, The Cowsills, Perry Como, The Drifters, Bob Dylan, The Shangri-Las, Rupert Holmes, Jean-Jacques Perrey, and Quincy Jones. 

As a “first-call” session guitarist, Vincent “Vinnie” Bell played on hundreds of commercials, and on scores of film soundtracks. His filmscore work ranged from “The Godfather”, to “The Devil in Miss Jones”, and even “The Muppet’s Christmas Carol”. In the very early 60’s, he started out as a member of the bands, The Tunesmiths, The Gum Drops and The Gallahads. Shortly after that, he was briefly a member of the highly successful The Three Suns. After starting a family, he decided to only do session work, mostly working out of New York City, but also sometimes flying to Los Angeles for sessions, when producers there specifically requested him. It was not uncommon for Bell to play on 3-5 recording sessions a day, at the height of his success. 

In 1965, Bell played electric guitar on Simon and Garfunkle’s ”The Sounds of Silence”, a recording that actually helped launch their remarkable musical career. Throughout the years, Bell occasionally did live club and stage work with artists such as Peggy Lee, Sinatra, Barbra Streisand and others. 

Besides being known for being a guitarist, Bell also helped re-invent the instrument. Working with Danelectro Guitars, Bell is credited in inventing the first electric 12-string guitar for them, as well as the Coral Electric Sitar (a cross between an Indian sitar, and the electric guitar). His electric sitar sound, (usually played by Bell himself, but sometimes by others) can be heard on hits by The Lemon Pipers’ (“Green Tambourine”), B.J. Thomas’ (“Hooked on a Feeling”), Freda Payne’s (“Band of Gold”), and The Box Tops’ (“Cry Like a Baby”).

When he wasn’t in the studio, he was in his home workshop, experimenting with electronics, and inventing his own unique guitar pedals. This was at a time when guitar pedals were not for sale, commercially. He pioneered the Wah-Wah pedal, and invented his own fuzztone pedals. By using these unique effects on recording sessions, Bell became in high demand by ‘60s record producers who were constantly looking for new sounds to feature on their records.

Again, working with with Nat Daniel, a most unique sound effect was devised by the team of the two men -- the strange “Watery” guitar sound. That particular sound (which is hard to describe, but sounds most similar to musical drops of water) was Vinnie’s most jealously-guarded professional secret. The effect was only played in recording sessions by Bell himself, and can be heard on records by the Four Seasons (“Can’t Take My Eyes Off You”), the Shangri-Las (“I Can Never Go Home Anymore”), to name just two hits. He played this “water” guitar sound in the early 70’s on the song “Midnight Cowboy”, which became a Top 40 hit for pianists Ferrante and Teicher. For that hit, he was awarded a Gold Record. It also won a Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Composition in 1971, while Bell was nominated for Best Instrumental Performance.

In addition to recording albums of his own, Bell’s guitar work was admired by artists as diverse as Jimi Hendrix and Frank Zappa. Hendrix once called Bell at home to ask how he achieved his many unusual guitar effects. Hendrix told Bell that he loved his electric sitar sound and soon after, Bell personally supervised a custom left-handed electric sitar, made especially for Hendrix. In the ‘70s, Bell was personally requested to play on recording sessions for Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention, and in the 80’s, for the band Anthrax.

In 2007, Vinnie Bell earned another Gold Record for his guitar work on the theme to David Lynch’s “Twin Peaks”. Bell also worked on many filmscore sessions for Woody Allen’s favorite film composer, Dick Hyman, in addition to work for “Twin Peaks” composer Angelo Badalamenti. 
Bell was voted Most Valuable Player on Electric Guitar seven times by the New York chapter of National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (NARAS), and was given their Emeritus award in the late 80’s. By the ‘90s, he had played guitar or banjo in the Macy’s annual New Year’s Day Parade, for over 20 years. 

Surviving Vincent are his beloved wife, Bonnie; daughter and son-in-law, Michele and Steve Teufel; grandchildren, Krista Teufel and Katharina (Nader) Kahoush; great-granddaughters, Isabelle, Sabrina and Olivia; step-children, Dawn Marie Solais, Albert Loan and many wonderful cousins. He was predeceased by his first wife, Marilyn; his son, Edward and daughter, Denise.

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Vincent E. Gambella

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